Game Changer

The Apple iPad, released this week, is a real game changer in the computer industry. Not because it is a tablet computer...there have been plenty of those...but because it is so un-computer-like. The iPad is a truly portable, and very affordable device that requires virtually no computer skills to use.  

Running the extremely intuitive iPhone operating system, the iPad does not require a mouse, keyboard, or other input devices to perform basic functions.  People can read an article, surf the Web, check their email, watch a video, or play a game simply by making a few basic gestures with their fingers.  Of course all this capability has been available on the iPhone for several years, but the difference-maker is the beautiful 10" iPad screen.  All that screen real estate, combined with great battery life (12 hours of continuous video playback!), in an extremely portable form factor, means that the iPad will soon be the device of choice for commuters, business travelers, those with young children, students, and computer-phobic individuals of all ages.

Because of its ease of use, and advanced capabilities, Apple has sold over 30 Million iPhones in the last 3 years.  It continually ranks as delivering the best user experience and most satisfied customers of any smartphone on the market. Initial production of the iPad for 2010 is projected at 8-10 Million units.  Apple is projecting 5 million units sold in 2010, and with extremely strong pre-order sales, that estimate may turn out to be on the low side.  The iPad should easily eclipse those numbers in future years, when production gets ramped up and people start to actually experience the devices.

The low entry pricing of $499 for a 16GB WiFi model will only help iPad sales and acceptance.  Competing favorably in price and weight with the netbook class of computers, the iPad delivers a user experience that is lightyears beyond those very limited devices.  And the more capable 3G iPads are only slightly more expensive...still considerably less than many notebook computers and far more portable.

Initially, most of the 150,000 existing iPhone apps will run on the iPad...right out of the box!  Add to that the plans of many developers to write special versions of their apps that take advantage of the iPad's larger screen size, and you have a winner. And Apple is about to release a version of it's popular iWork suite of productivity tools for the iPad.  iWork is fully compatible with the ubiquitous Microsoft Office suite, so the business user or student will have access to Word-compatible word processing via Pages, Excel spreadsheets using Numbers, and PowerPoint presentations using Keynote. Couple that with advanced wireless capabilities and you have the perfect business device for many...small and light enough to slip into a briefcase, purse or portfolio, a battery that will power the device all day long with ease, and all the software necessary to get through the day's tasks.

Some of the things that will make the iPad a hit haven't even been released yet.  Many magazines and newspapers, from Newsweek to the Wall Street Journal, are developing iPad-specific versions of their publications.  Major publishers are jumping on the bandwagon to offer their books in iPad form via the new Apple Bookstore.  Brightcove, a video content delivery system used be many major media sites has announced special video playback tools for the iPad that will convert Flash video (lacking on the iPhone and iPad) to HTML5 video on the fly. And applications that we can only dream of are in the works...powerful games, amazing visualization tools, and even media creation tools. There is going to be a virtual blizzard of new products, apps, accessories, ideas and uses for the iPad in the coming years.

At EO MediaWorks, we see the iPad as a tremendous opportunity to leverage our content creation and delivery expertise into new markets for new clients.  We will be working with the iPad from day one to explore ways to take advantage of its capabilities and deploy it for our clients. Stay tuned!